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My stomach is flip-flopping with apprehension. Once in a while I have to remind myself to take deep breaths, and keep in mind that what will be will be. If Chancy's spleen is affected without metastases elsewhere, it may be operable. If it is metastasized cancer, we'll just keep her as comfy as possible for as long as possible. Even if it is possibly operable, I'm still not sure she's a good surgery candidate. And if we do choose surgery, do we want to try the scope/tieback at the same time? It all seems like so much, too much for my poor sweet old girlie. Lots to think about... Yesterday she chased Sparks (a grey we're pupsitting) once around the yard. She was having soooo much fun, but I had to stop her for fear of her getting hurt or having a breathing crisis.

Here are new pics of my Stripey tigerdog. This is from Sunday, on our way home from a picnic at the beach. It's inside Chancy's chariot, our new minivan. And this is from two minutes ago, Chancy by my desk at work. Workdays are always improved by the presence of dogs. eta: cameraphone pics, sorry they're blurry.

Ultrasound appt is today. My stomach has been in knots all morning. I brought Chancy to work with me today so we can go straight from here. She's resting comfortably on her bed by my desk. Her appetite is still fine as long as I keep serving her meals in "smoothie" form. : On our am walk she scared me a bit. It was a tad cooler today, so we went three blocks instead of one. But about 3/4 of the way home, she suddenly stopped in her tracks, closed her mouth and stared into the middle distance for a full minute. I saw drool falling from her lips. She looked like she was going to vomit, but was not heaving. After that minute, I coaxed her to continue walking another 15 feet or so before she did puke. Just a few tbsps of yellow bile. Chancy is not a puker, so this scares me more than it would on either of my other two dogs. After that she seemed fine. Ate her breakfast "bisque" like a champ. I'm not looking forward to today's appointment. I know it's silly, and is the least of my worries, but I wish they didn't have to shave her fuzzy tummy. It just reminds me far too distinctly of Sissy's ultrasound, where I was well aware she would not live long enough to grow her beautiful fur back.

Carole, Chancy loved digging in your doggie pit that day we visited. You're right, she really does forget she's a senior. She's eternally young at heart. It's one of the many many reasons we adore her.

Chancy's update for today... Her appetite is okay, now that I've discovered a new trick. I noticed yesterday that she wanted to drink the gravy on her food, but didn't want the solids. So since then I've been making "Doggie Smoothies" for her, which is basically the same mix of food, with extra water and/or chicken broth added and blended until smooth. So far she really seems to like them. Soon she'll be expecting a "boost" of bee pollen or some such extravagance. The ultrasound is still set for tomorrow at 2pm. We went to the regular vet yesterday and got an abdominal xray which showed that her spleen is enlarged. It was good to know it's not fluid (which means her heart is not compromised and her liver hasn't failed completely), but of course not good that her spleen is in overdrive. We'll know more after the ultrasound. If it's cancer of the spleen (a strong likelihood, though our vet kindly didn't want to use that "C" word), we'll need to determine if it has metastasized anywhere else. If it seems to be only in the spleen, it may be operable. We'll know more after tomorrow. Our vet laughed hard when he heard me refer to Chancy's ultrasound as her "spa appointment for her Brazilian..." Thank you all again (and still) for the kind thoughts and wishes. For now she's hanging in there. The heat and humidity of these last few days has been tough on the poor ol' gal. We're doing our best to keep her comfy, at the expense of our AC bill . Our travel plans are up in the air until we know what we're dealing with. We still intend to go, but tomorrow's findings may change that.

I don't use Doggles. My hounds are not outside very much, and my vet ophthalmologist is confident that Tip and Marla's eyes are well controlled.

Tipper and Marla both have pannus. They are both on maintenance doses of Neo-Poly-Dex ointment. Caught early, it's very easily managed. Waggin' will be just fine!

I have an appointment with my regular vet today at 3:45. The ultrasound is still set for Thursday, but I want to see if there's anything we can do to give Chancy some relief in the meantime.

I agree, it seems like fluid in her abdomen. It's exactly like the swelling Sissy had when she had excess fluid in her belly. I can't get an ultrasound any sooner than Thursday unless I take her to the U (where I don't trust them for various reasons). Even then I'm not sure they'd get me in unless it's a dire emergency. Can the fluid be drained prior to the ultrasound? My fear is they'd need to be guided by ultrasound so they don't do further damage while trying to help... Vet opens at 9am. I'm having a hard time determining how much of an actual emergency this is, and how much is me just freaking out with worry...

I was lucky to get this appt. I can go to the U if it becomes an emergency, but I'll avoid that if possible. I don't like/trust the U very much (nor does my vet). I'm hoping we can get some new pain meds Thursday too. I have Rimadyl on hand, but because her liver is already compromised, I won't give it to her unless it's a dire emergency. It's hard to tell when she's hurting, as she's soooo stoic, my tough ol' tigerdog. She pants a lot, but it's hard to tell if that's because of pain or just her breathing problems...

That was Tipper's toe, and I was obsessively worried about that until this took up all the worry-space in my brain. Chancy's belly is still firm and enlarged. She was restless again last night. Her breathing is worse, and this morning she would only eat 2/3 of her breakfast. Chancy has NEVER skipped a meal. Maybe she's losing ground not so slowly now... Thursday seems so far away.

Just got an appointment with my vet's recommended specialist for an ultrasound on Thursday at 2pm. It'll be at a different vet's office, but I'll have them forward all results to my vet too. I'm liking my vet more and more...

It's wonderful to see good news in the H&M board. : Not that IBD is any picnic, but any non-cancer DX is cause for celebration to me. Good luck with treatments!

My vet called back. Unfortunately I missed my chance to get the ultrasound at his clinic last week. The specialist won't b back there for a month, which is obviously too long to wait. I could go to the U, but I'm not thrilled with my prior experiences there, and would prefer to go to the specialist my grey-vet recommends. So the vet is calling around to find out where his specialist is going to be, and will refer me to whatever clinic he can in order to get the ultrasound this week. I came home to my regular waggy happy-to-see-me trio, but as soon as Chancy went outside to pee, her breathing became horrible (not that it was great to begin with). It's very humid and mid-80s out.

Oh I'm sooooo happy to hear of his progress! :

Chancy's been on milk thistle for several months now, and her liver values are still creeping inexorably upward. I will likely go forward with the ultrasound, as I agree with those who take comfort in knowing they did all they could. It terrifies me nonetheless. Knowing VS not knowing, kind of a useless and frustrating debate, if the ultimate result is being helpless to change anything...

Thank you everyone for your kind thoughts. Chancy had a restless night last night, which is very unusual for her. I think her enlarged tummy is causing some discomfort. I'll be calling the vet when they open to see what he thinks about the ultrasound. I'm again leaning toward doing it, even though the thought makes me sick to my stomach. It's just too similar to how I lost Sissy last year. I don't know the odds of it being anything besides cancer, but it seems slim, which is why I was feeling so negative about it yesterday. She still has a good appetite, good stools, and gets excited (too excited for her breathing's sake ) about car rides and walks (even though she can't go far or fast). She's still the sweetest, gentlest hound I've even had the honor of knowing. This morning I watched Sid, our pesty kitten, washing Chancy's face. Both Tip and Marla would've sent the kitten running in terror. Chancy just endured the attention, possibly even enjoyed it. This is from a couple months ago, but it's not an uncommon sight here:

Within the last few days, I've noticed a slight enlargement of Chancy's abdomen, in precisely the same location as Sissy's when she was diagnosed with liver and spleen cancer. I've been planning to get an abdominal ultrasound, and had thought I could put it off until early August, since her liver values of eleven days ago were high, but not through the roof according to our trusted vet. With this new firm swelling, and Chancy's ever-increasing breathing problems, I may have to step up the ultrasound. FWIW, her appetite and other bodily functions are in good working order. I had also been considering tieback surgery for her breathing, but the liver seems to be taking a front seat now... My poor ol' gal is having a rough few days. I am a constant worrier, but I'm especially worried that we may not have much time left with our sweet ol' tigerdog. We're planning a roadtrip at the end of July to Grapehounds, and we intend to bring all the pups. It seems likely to be Chancy's last big trip. I can't see leaving her behind, as I truly believe she is happiest when with us, and especially if that means also being in the car. The pessimistic side of me wonders if there's any point in doing the ultrasound, since if it is indeed cancer, we are unwilling to put our beloved fragile shy old lady through aggressive treatments. I find myself wondering if it could even be anything else besides cancer. Please help us by sending positive thoughts. I'm not good at staying positive through these things. We adore our gentle stripey tigerdog, and two years with her isn't enough.

Welcome! Just cuz I'm nosy and we all looove photos, I took the liberty of posting your album pics of your handsome boys here: Bert: Ringo:

Tick Borne Diseases. Poor bald boy! I hope you have lots of sunscreen!

Gabapentin is a drug for nerve pain. As I understand it, it's a human drug not really "approved" for veterinary use yet, but has been known to be helpful for dogs. The pacing is probably a pain reaction, so it sounds to me like the gabapentin isn't doing enough. Either the dose needs to be adjusted, or some other meds might need to be employed either "instead of" or "in addition to" the gabapentin. Discuss all that you're observing with your vet in detail.

I'd suggest feeding twice daily instead of once. It's easier on their high-metabolism systems. (If I only ate once a day, I'd be insane with hunger by nightfall) And leash walking before and after is fine. But nothing strenuous, no running/jogging until she's had some time to digest. Congrats on your new greyhound! What's her name? Where are the photos??

Glad you have some answers. As for pills, hiding them in a carefully sculpted bite-sized blob of cream cheese or peanut butter works like magic for all my pups. :

I wouldn't use the Nu-Skin. Not only does it sting like blazes (I know, I've tried it on myself, OUCH!), but mine have licked it right off, making the wound even worse. The powder might work if she's not a licker.

Check those teeny little nubs of teeth at the very back of his jaws, behind the big molars. Many times even folks who brush diligently can miss those.